Artur Łopatka

The article analyses the direction and intensity of changes occurring in agriculture in mountain areas in Europe between 2000 and 2022. For the calculations, the ESA CCI Land Cover global land-use map set was used. This dataset was established by the European Space Agency (ESA) through the classification of satellite images from sources (MERIS, AVHRR, SPOT, PROBA, and Sentinel-3). In the next step, the organisational features and economic performance of farms located in mountain areas of the European Union were determined for the period 2004–2022. For this purpose, data from the European Farms Accountancy Data Network (FADN-FSDN) were used. Subsequently, using Poland as a case study, the capacity of mountain agriculture to implement key environmental interventions under the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) 2023–2027 was assessed. The results highlight the varying directions and intensity of organisational changes occurring in mountain agriculture across Europe. They also show that farms can operate successfully in these areas, although their economic situation varies between EU countries. The findings indicate the need for further adaptation of CAP instruments to better reflect the ecological and economic conditions of mountain areas. Strengthening support mechanisms for these regions within the current and future CAP is of crucial importance for protecting biodiversity, promoting sustainable land use, and maintaining the socio-environmental functions of rural mountain landscapes. Our study highlights that the CAP for mountain farms should be targeted, long-term, and compensatory, so as to compensate for the naturally unfavorable farming conditions and support their multifunctional role. The most important assumptions of CAP for mountain farms are a fair system of compensatory payments (LFA/ANCs), support for local and high-quality production, income diversification, and investments adapted to mountain conditions.

The article analyses the direction and intensity of changes occurring in agriculture in mountain areas in Europe between 2000 and 2022. For the calculations, the ESA CCI Land Cover global land-use map set was used. This dataset was established by the European Space Agency (ESA) through the classification of satellite images obtained from the following data sources: MERIS, AVHRR, SPOT, PROBA, and Sentinel-3. In the next step, the organisational features and economic performance of farms located in mountain areas of the European Union were determined for the period 2004–2022. For this purpose, data from the European Farms Accountancy Data Network (FADN-FSDN) were used. Subsequently, using Poland as a case study, the capacity of mountain agriculture to implement key environmental interventions (eco-schemes, organic farming, and agri-environment-climate measures) under the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) 2023-2027 was assessed. The results highlight the varying directions and intensity of organisational changes occurring in mountain agriculture across Europe. They also show that farms can operate successfully in these areas, although their economic situation varies between EU countries. The findings indicate the need for further adaptation of CAP instruments to better reflect the ecological and economic conditions of mountain areas. Strengthening support mechanisms for these regions within the current and future CAP is of crucial importance for protect biodiversity, promoting sustainable land use, and maintaining the socio-environmental functions of rural mountain landscapes.

The aim of the study was to determine nitrous oxide (N ₂ O) emissions in rapeseed and maize grain cultivation in accordance with the requirements of the Renewable Energy Directive (RED2) regarding the cultivation of biofuel crops. The EU Implementing Regulation 2022/996 introducing the updated methodology recommends the use of the Stehfest and Bouwman (S&B) Tier 2 model to determine direct nitrous oxide (N ₂ O) emissions from soil following fertilizer application and the IPCC (Tier 1) methodology for other sources of N ₂ O emissions. The study was based on survey data from 1525 farms; while soil parameters required by the S&B model (pH, soil organic carbon content and texture) were supplemented from the IUNG-PIB soil map where survey’s data were missing. The calculated N ₂ O emissions were aggregated to NUTS2 regions for Poland. Differences in emissions were linked to local agricultural practices (mainly fertilization levels) and soil conditions. The use of the S&B model increases the direct N ₂ O emission factor from fertilizers applied to fine soils or soils with an organic carbon content greater than 3%, compared to the IPCC Tier 1 methodology.

This study discusses the issue of determining the direction and strength of changes taking place in the structure of agricultural land in the mountain and foothill areas of the Carpathians in Poland in comparison with Slovakia, Romania and Ukraine. The most important financial institutional measures dedicated to the protection of the natural environment in Polish agriculture in the Areas facing Natural and other specific Constraints (ANCs) mountain and foothill in the first year of the CAP 2023–2027 were also established. Satellite data from 2001 to 2022 were used. The analyses used the land use classification MCD12Q1 provided by NASA and were made on the basis of satellite imagery collections from the MODIS sensor placed on two satellites: TERRA and AQUA. In EU countries, a decreasing trend in agricultural areas has been observed in areas below 350 m above sea level. In areas above 350 m, this trend weakened or even turned into an upward trend. Only in Ukraine was a different trend observed. It was found that in Poland, the degree of involvement of farmers from mountain and foothill areas in implementing financial institutional measures dedicated to protecting the natural environment during the study period was not satisfactory.

Zaobserwowano, że różnica maksymalnych i minimalnych wartości NDVI w okresie zbliżonym do żniw (odpowiednio mxNDVI i mnNDVI), określana jako wskaźnik haNDVI (amplituda NDVI związana ze żniwami), koreluje z rolniczą jakością gleby i udziałem zasiewów. NDVI ulega nasyceniu, gdy wartości wskaźnika powierzchni liści (LAI) znacznie przekraczają jeden, więc za przestrzenne zróżnicowanie haNDVI odpowiadają głównie wartości minimalnego NDVI po zbiorach (mnNDVI). Aby wyjaśnić zmienność wartości mnNDVI, sformułowano trzy hipotezy o: i) wpływie doboru upraw, ii) wpływie wielkości pola oraz iii) wpływie gleby. Aby określić, która z tych hipotez miała największy wpływ na zmienność mnNDVI, opracowane modele uczenia maszynowego tego wskaźnika poddano testowi usuwającemu z nich poszczególne zmienne objaśniające. Usunięcie zmiennej nie powoduje istotnego wzrostu błędu modelu, jeśli zmienna nie wnosi do modelu użytecznych informacji. Test ten wykazał, że wskaźnik mnNDVI zależy prawie wyłącznie od wskaźnika uprawy, który był medianą mnNDVI dla upraw, a nie bezpośrednio od zmiennych glebowych, takich jak rolnicza jakość gleby czy wilgotność gleby. W związku z tym odrzucono hipotezę o bezpośrednim wpływie gleby. Wyjaśnieniem obserwowanej korelacji haNDVI z jakością gleby jest praktyka rolnicza polegająca na wyborze upraw o niskim mnNDVI (zboża, rzepak) przy lepszych warunkach glebowych oraz upraw o wysokim mnNDVI (rośliny pastewne, użytki zielone) przy gorszych warunkach glebowych.

A necessary condition for agriculture to provide environmental public goods at the level desired by the society is the existence and compliance with appropriate “rules of the game” (institutions). Undoubtedly, institutions are of fundamental importance for agriculture in areas with natural or other specific constraints (ANCs), the new delimitation of which was recommended by the European Commission to all EU member states under the CAP 2014–2020 and which is valid under the CAP 2023–2027. The aim of the study is to indicate the role of institutions in the new institutional economics (NIE) approach in the context of supporting agriculture in ANCs. The specific goals consist of indicating a method for determining the current ANCs in the EU, including Poland; characterizing their current state in Poland, as compared to other EU countries; determining their role in the implementation of the agri-environment-climate (AECM) and organic farming measure under the EU CAP (they are particularly predestined to provide environmental public goods) and also specify the determinants encouraging farmers in ANCs to participate in these measures; assessing the production and economic situation of agriculture in these areas in individual EU countries. The data source was data from the Institute of Soil Science and Plant Cultivation—State Research Institute in Puławy and the Institute of Agricultural and Food Economics—National Research Institute, Agency for Restructuring and Modernization of Agriculture, European Commission FADN—FSDN. Descriptive methods were used to analyze and present the materials. Tabular graphic logistic regression model, the Wald test, the Cox–Snell pseudo-R2 measure and its additional variant proposed by Nagelkerke were used. The study is intended to fill the research gap regarding the determination of the ability of agriculture in ANCs to reconcile the market function, which is reflected in its economic situation, with the provision of environmental public goods to the society. It was determined that in communes with a high saturation of lowland ANCs, farms achieving worse production results in the form of lower wheat yields and lower net income calculated without subsidies per 1 ha of utilized agricultural area (UAA) had a greater tendency to implement AECM and organic farming measure. In most EU countries, agriculture in ANCs is characterized by extensification of agricultural production compared to other agriculture. It generally incurs lower costs and, as a result, obtains lower production effects and income from agricultural activities per 1 ha of UAA. The study provides arguments supporting the thesis that for agriculture in ANCs to achieve satisfactory economic effects and at the same time be able to provide the public with environmental public goods to a wide extent, it is necessary to have public financial incentives in the form of subsidies from the EU CAP.

A simplified differential equation for the dynamics of soil organic carbon (SOC) that describes the rate of SOC change (dSOC/dt) was constructed using the LASSO regression—a regularized linear regression machine learning method. This method selects the best predefined explanatory variables and empirically evaluates the relevant parameters of the equation. The result, converted into a formula for the long-term equilibrium level of soil carbon, indicates the existence of carbon sequestration potential in the studied regions of Poland. In particular, the model predicts high SOC content in regions with a high Topographic Wetness Index (TWI), such as river valleys or areas with high cattle density, as expected.

Increasing the European Union’s (EU) current efforts to protect the natural environment, especially in the context of protecting agricultural soils, is one of its basic challenges. The European Commission (EC) is now ready and willing to strongly strengthen protection of the natural environment. Activities are primarily supported by the European Green Deal (EGD) strategy from 2019 and its thematic strategies, as well as the currently revised Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) for 2023–2027. Further direct support for farms from Areas facing Natural or other Specific constraints (ANCs support), compensating for them at least some of the additional costs and lost income related to the difficulties for agricultural production, will be one of the most important actions of the future CAP in the context of the protection of agricultural soils. It should be added that, in recent years, all EU Member States, including Poland (in 2019), have carried out a mandatory new delimitation of ANCs according to the same rules established by the EC Joint Research Center (EC JRC) under the CAP 2014–2020. The aim of the study is to characterize the organizational situation of Polish agriculture, to indicate the direction and strength of the changes taking place in it, as well as the main determinants of its further functioning in areas (communes) with a particularly high saturation of current ANCs, as compared to other areas, with and without ANCs. It is also important to present the economic consequences and development opportunities for farms conducting agricultural production in these areas. The results of the study show the condition of Polish agriculture and changes taking place in this sector in areas with different saturation and specificity of ANCs related to challenges for environmental protection included in the EGD strategy and the current and future CAP. The research results will also provide an important basis for policymakers in undertaking effective agricultural support in ANCs and for the scientific community to develop agricultural research that can meet the most pressing challenges faced in the areas. It should be noted that the study emphasizes the significance of the new institutional economics, the postulates of which can provide solid support for the actions taken to better protect ANCs.

The purpose of this study is to characterize municipalities with a high share of LFAs (specific type zone I) as well as to assess the functioning of farms located in such municipalities against the background of analogous farms in non-LFA municipalities which kept accounts for the Polish FADN...